Antique collector maintains decades worth of Iraqi heritage

Record ID: 1397003

  • Title: Antique collector maintains decades worth of Iraqi heritage
  • Date: 25th February 2019
  • Summary: NAJAF, IRAQ (RECENT) (REUTERS) GUNS, PISTOLS AND OTHER EXHIBITS HANGING ON WALL AT MUSEUM INSIDE HOUSE OF RETIRED IRAQI TEACHER AND ANTIQUE COLLECTOR, YOUSIF KADHIM AKAR AKAR, POINTING TO EXHIBITS AND TALKING ABOUT THEM PISTOLS HANGING ON WALL / SIGN READING (Arabic): "Bishtawa Pistols dating back to Napoleon era" VARIOUS OF AKAR HOLDING BOX OF OLD COINS AND TALKING (SOUND
  • Embargoed: 11th March 2019 13:03
  • Keywords: Antique collector in Najaf Iraq antiquities Iraq culture Iraq heritage Iraq war
  • Location: NAJAF, IRAQ
  • City: NAJAF, IRAQ
  • Country: Iraq
  • Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment
  • Reuters ID: LVA001A32VY39
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:A small house in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf bears witness to unique episodes of the country's history, from 200-year-old guns and watches to spoils taken from the British army during the 1920's revolt, all thanks to the passion of one Iraqi antique lover.
    Sheikh Yousif Akar has been putting together a rare ensemble of guns, pistols, swords, ancient household pots, stamps, watches, coins and banknotes since the 1970s when he first bought his house.
    The 80-year-old antique collector and teacher dedicated his entire monthly salary to buy nearly 1500 pieces that tell the story of Iraq's history across the past decades, depending on his wife, a school headmistress, to support the household.
    For five decades, Akar says he spent nearly 500 million Iraqi dinars ($419,000) to buy the artefacts.
    The antique collector, who is also a tribal leader, used to hide the guns he collected under the rule of the country's former strongman Saddam Hussein in farms at al-Qadisiya district in Najaf.
    After the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Akar managed to bring back his collection of guns and pistols to his home-turned-museum.
    The small museum attracted few concerned officials and curious antique lovers, but he rarely advertises for his unique possessions because his house is too small to receive guests.
    Now the retiree only hopes that his collection will fall into the right hands. Meanwhile, he spends his time talking to his grandchildren about the precious items hanging on the walls of his house.
    "At the end of my life, I wish they (the government) would allocate to a place for me to keep these antiquities to them, for Najaf, for Iraq, for all Iraq. These are precious items. Anyone coming here becomes astonished with the things I (collected). Many of these items are put together and hidden as I'm not putting them on display," he said.
    An official at the city's provisional council says she wishes a bigger museum could house Akar's rare artefacts. One obstacle is that it would be difficult to specify whether the museum will be Akar's or the government's, Aseel al-Talakani explained.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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